NEW YORK (CNN/Money) -
Today was a bit ugly right from the opening bell. We had Conseco's bankruptcy and a flaccid sales forecast by Micron both before the bell, and that was all she wrote! Techs and financials were hit of course, and the rising price of oil didn't help either. The Dow fell 88.04 points to 8,447.35, while the NAZ was off 30.54 to 1,361.51.
After the closing bell things got a little better -- Oracle topped estimates by two cents. Hey, watch me, Lewis Carroll (I'll have what he's smoking. Especially today. Down the rabbit hole? I'm right behind you, buddy!), I mean Andy Serwer on CNN's "American Morning with Paula Zahn," and Headline News. Read Loose Change to find about burgers! Here's wazzup:
STOCKYARD The real culprit today was Micron Technology, which said biz is bad. Righty-o. Stock fell $3.06 to $10.22. (Traders used to love this one!) As you might imagine, T-I and everything chip related fell. (Hey, you want fun stuff? Go read "Alice in Wonderland." This is real, baby! This is the market! This is your life! This is your 401(k) sucking wind!)
HCA finally settled its case. Man! That took years! Now it's Tenet's turn?... And what is up with Blockbuster? Said its biz tanked after Thanksgiving! Why? BBI fell $6.27 to $13.13 (more than 32 percent!).... Heard through the vine that Carly Fiorina is cautiously optimistic. Well who isn't?...
What George Bush has to do to get our country going again is remove the fear discount from our economy. Right now we are in some kind of phony war. We need to either shake or bake, ya dig? Right now every single company in this country is holding up some kind of cap ex because of "the war." Remove it and everyone spends just a little more money on the margin and we are on the road back. Not quite back. But on the road (Jack Kerouac of Lowell, Mass.).
CONSECO Third largest bankruptcy in U.S. history (after WorldCom and Enron). Based in Carmel, Ind. Not a surprise, of course. And they really had no credibility in the end. They kept saying everything's okay, and it all just got worse and worse. Green Tree, er, I mean Conseco Financial, is being sold. I can't believe they found a buyer; must be pennies on the dollar. Still, Conseco has 13 million customers (policies and annuities should be okay because states take over this stuff.)
Company had 14,000 employees at the end of last year, including some colorful execs with apparent women issues. Steve Hilbert, the founder, is on his sixth marriage, this one to Tomisue, a former exotic dancer, who he told me he adores. Gary Wendt -- brought in as the savior, failed miserably and was paid handsomely -- had his high-profile divorce from wife Lorna while he was head of G.E. Capital. (Lorna made the cover of FORTUNE!)
Ironically Gary Wendt has made Steve Hilbert look good! Hilbert is a much more likable guy. A salesman with a tacky mansion and naming rights for the Indiana Pacers, he was snookered by the guy who ran Green Tree. Gary just snookered us. Stock hit $58 in 1998. Now it's at pennies. $52.3 billion in assets. $51.2 billion of debt. Conseco, RIP.
MONSANTO CEO Hendrik Verfaillie just up and leaves? Forced out? What's up with that? "I can smell the chemicals." Mmm, mmm, good!
Loose Change
Did you see the Enron footage of Skilling talking about super-gazillion accounting or whatever it was? Pretty funny....
This from Singapore Sling: "What does it tell you about the state of the world -- or how far we have/have not evolved in the past 50-100 years, when the sale price for Adams chewing gums is more than 2X the price fetched for Burger King? I'm not sure, but it is certainly something to chew on."... All I've had to eat today is a Double Quarter Pounder with no cheese. (Thanks, Paul Nocera, for the recommendation!) I know, I know, it's making the column strange, but I'm doing my part to try to help out the folks in Oak Brook! ...
From Eric: "It's pronounced Tar-zhay, not Tar-jay." Yes, of course!... Blood Sweat & Tears stuff: "I actually directed a reunion concert with BS&T in about 1979, with Clayton-Thomas singing. Shot it in Sun Valley. He was OK as long as he didn't drink anything stronger than water." And this: "One BST member was bassist Jim Fielder, who played earlier with Buffalo Springfield. Fielder attended my high school, Loara High School in Anaheim, California, which also produced folk singer Tim Buckley and most of the No Doubt band, including Gwen Stefani... Len Hall" Thanks! ...
Hey, can't wait for the Rockets vs. Pacers tonight! Watch Yao do some Ming against Jermaine O'Neal!...
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